Industrial Cthulhu: Starting as an Island Lord

Gwen truly did not know how a ship was supposed to sail. She excitedly touched the mast, then ran eagerly to the ship’s side to look at the rotating paddle wheel.

Only when she got closer could she see that the steel paddle wheel was not actually rotating. Instead, the steel was continuously writhing—some parts bulging outward, others sinking inward.

It was like countless individual light bulbs forming a flowing marquee sign. Each bulb merely switched between lit and unlit, but when arranged together, they became an image.

And these pieces of steel kept writhing, arranging themselves into various shapes, making it look as though the paddle wheel was rotating.

Gwen did not sense that anything was wrong at all. She simply widened her eyes. “So amazing!”

She spread her arms and fell straight forward, her whole body slapping onto the deck, as if she were embracing the ship. “Friends, you’re so amazing!”

The rough, cold, hardened, rusted deck—covered in sharp protruding edges—did not pierce or injure her. Instead, it slowly sank downward, as though responding to her embrace.

She rubbed against the deck a little, then turned her head to look at Nora.

“Nora, it actually worked! This ship really can move, it’s incredible!”

“No, I think you’re even more incredible.”

“How could that be, Nora? I don’t understand anything about sailing. It’s the one doing all the driving.”

Nora glanced at the steel sail beside them, which was struggling to bend its body and pretending to be filled with wind. The corner of her eye twitched.

“I don’t think it knows how to sail either.”

After saying that, Nora’s expression turned serious. She solemnly said to Gwen:

“Gwen, I’m very certain that your will has overridden reality. This will trigger a divine descent. Mm, it’s called Cognitive Interference here. In short, hide as quickly as possible. Pollution is about to descend.”

“Cog—Cognitive Interference?”

“Yes. This is forbidden knowledge in the Silent Sanctum. I never taught you this before. There’s no time to explain the details. You just need to know that next, centered around this ship, a large amount of pollution will descend from the sky.”

“Ah?!” Gwen froze. “Th-Then what should I do?”

“You’re a Transcendent. Uh, probably a Transcendent. Pollution is extremely dangerous for you. You must avoid it as much as possible. However, based on experience, the range of the pollution’s descent will be centered on this ship. Just stay far away from it.”

“What? But I don’t want to leave my new friends. Can I hide under the deck?”

“No! I already said it’s centered on it. As long as you haven’t left it, you could encounter pollution surging out of the Sea of Unawareness.”

“All right…”

Outside the Steel Ark, the islanders of Castel were also carrying out an evacuation.

Ever since the island had built a new testing ground and begun researching basic science, occurrences of Cognitive Interference had not been rare.

Although ordinary islanders might not necessarily encounter it themselves, most of them had received training on avoiding pollution descents.

At this moment, they began evacuating according to contingency plans.

This Steel Ark was simply too enormous. No one could say for certain the range of the Cognitive Interference’s descent. It might even encompass the entire island.

And because a pollution descent involved spatial anchoring, moving the source of interference would not change the location where the pollution descended. Therefore, they could only take shelter where they were.

Ships at sea immediately pushed their power to the maximum and scattered in all directions to flee. Islanders entered the island’s underground shelters one after another. The Church Guard took out Holy Texts, pressed them to their foreheads, and softly recited Hughes’s name.

—The last method was not officially issued. That habit had been brought back by Expeditionary Army units rotating off the front line. It was said that reciting the Lord’s name could restrain many anomalies.

The islanders’ evacuation also encountered many problems.

For example, many who had seen the Steel Ark had already fallen into temporary madness. The reconnaissance airship in the sky flew in a crooked, swaying manner, as if drunk. At a glance, it was clear that the helmsman navigator had gone half-mad.

There were no conditions to treat them now. Basically, they could only be injected with sedatives. Those without medicine on hand underwent physical sedation, then were carried into the tunnels by their companions.

Many shelters had been built within Castel’s underground Network Path System. Food, water, and ventilation were specially reserved. More importantly, the protection was absolutely reliable, with multiple independent sealed compartments, greatly increasing survival rates when facing a pollution descent.

While the islanders were taking shelter, the Banshees gathered together and did not act.

Hughes himself could purify pollution. And the Banshees of Death, who shared vitality with him through a Symbiotic Contract, although unable to actively purify external pollution, would not be eroded by pollution either.

Simply put, they were immune to pollution.

Therefore, they did not need to worry at all about pollution descents caused by Cognitive Interference.

If casualties appeared on the island later, they would need to cooperate in rescue operations. For now, the Steel Ark that had suddenly surfaced from the sea did not appear to pose great danger, so there was no need to maintain full vigilance beside it.

Thus, amid a tense atmosphere, everyone waited.

Who would have thought that this wait would last an entire day and night.

The Expeditionary Army from Blood Harbor had already arrived by ship at a more distant position. Rescue forces were fully prepared, waiting to move immediately if casualties appeared.

Even the Prince had requisitioned several civilian ships, remaining on the outer perimeter to assist with transporting wounded and supplies.

All the Banshees of Death had been fully mobilized and stood ready.

The airships in the sky formed a dense ring. From afar, it looked as though some kind of ritual was being conducted.

Hughes was currently on one of the airships, holding binoculars and looking toward Castel in the distance.

“Should we withdraw some people first?”

“There’s no need. The evacuation process would actually be more dangerous. Moreover, Castel’s main cathedral must not be lost. The Banshees have all been committed. If pollution appears, it can be handled immediately. And…”

Hughes rubbed his chin.

“I always have a premonition that a pollution descent might not occur.”

“You mean Cognitive Interference didn’t happen?”

Standing beside Hughes was Erwin, who was responsible for commanding the outer Expeditionary Army for rescue operations.

“No, Cognitive Interference definitely happened. That ship’s state is far too strange. It’s like a donkey made of insect cocoons, pretending to be normal in an extremely twisted way.”

Hughes took a deep breath, his voice lowering. “I think the problem might lie with Gwen.”

Erwin glanced at the enormous Steel Ark on the sea and could not help but nod.

“You think her Cognitive Interference won’t trigger a pollution descent?”

“More than that. This world seems especially lenient toward her will. You’ve seen her experiences, haven’t you? Many things that violate physical laws are completely impossible for others, yet she can do them. This world might be idealistic, but for her…”

“Especially idealistic.”

“Sometimes I even have the illusion that she might be the embodiment of the world’s will itself.”

“【Named One】… what exactly is it?”